McDonald's advises hungry, sick employees to get welfare benefits

In this video from Low Pay is Not OK, we hear some of a recorded conversation between a ten-year McDonald's employee and the company's "McResources" helpline for employees in financial trouble. Nancy, the employee, explains that she can't make ends meet for her family on her McDonald's pay, and the company representative counsels her to enroll in federally funded welfare programs (low-paid fast-food employees account for $7B in welfare payments) to help her eat and get medical care.

The folks at Low Pay Is Not OK, one of the campaigns seeking the ability to unionize fast food workers and increase their pay, has posted the above video of a 10-year McDonald’s vet (who earns $8.25/hour and has never received a raise) placing a call to the McResources hotline, which the company advertises to cash-strapped employees with statements like “Getting Help is Easy” and “Free help when you need it!”

The recording is admittedly edited by the video-makers, so we don’t know the full content of what the hotline operator said. However, it is clear from the call that the operator does suggest that the employee seek out food pantries, look into SNAP (food stamps), and Medicaid.